[B-Greek] Purpose Clause
Muzi
MBTMUZ001 at mail.uct.ac.za
Fri Feb 25 02:18:27 EST 2005
Dear all
I have difficulty with the purpose clause in regard to it's results.
Before posing my question I'll give views that have confused me. From
these views I'll then pick the things that confuse me in asking the
question.
Collin Smith, an associate of Dr James White on White's AOMIN website,
explains it with an example. The example is "... we have believed in
Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified ..." (Gal 2:16, NASB). Collin
says, "Paul, by using the subjunctive, is not intending to communicate
any kind of uncertainty with regard to justification. Rather, by using
the subjunctive in a hina clause, he is proclaiming that our faith in
Christ has its purpose in our justification, and also has its end result
in our justification."
However, a footnote in Dr Charlie Bing's Lordship Salvation dissertation
(Ch 2) quotes Ernest De Witt Burton as saying "There is no certain,
scarcely a probable, instance in the New Testament of a clause
introduced by hina denoting actual result conceived of as such." The
footnote comes with Charlie's discussion of Eph 2:10 (For we are God's
workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God
prepared in advance for us to do.)
Corey Keating at http://www.ntgreek.org/ says the following
a) The purpose clause (a dependent clause) is used to show the purpose
or intention of the action of the main verb in the sentence (in the
independent clause). This construction is meant to show intention, not
to state whether something actually happens or not.
b) The purpose clause answers the question "Why?" or "For what reason?",
rather than "What?".
c) The conjunction that precedes the subjunctive verb (usually i{na or
o{pw") is translated "in order that" or possibly "that". For the sake
of clarity, it is probably best translated "in order that".
d) If the subjunctive mood is used in a purpose (or in a result)
clause, then the action should not be thought of as a possible result,
but should be viewed as the stated outcome that will happen (or has
happened) as a result of another stated action. The use of the
subjunctive is not to indicate that something may or might result
from a given action, but it is stating the purpose of or reason for
an action.
e) The subjunctive mood in a purpose clause actually functions more like
a verb in the indicative mood rather than in the optative mood. It is
not stating the possibility or probability of an action, but instead
telling the intention of the primary action.
My Confusion
Collins seems to that the result is realised. Theologically I agree with
him as far as Gal 2:16 is concerned. However, grammatically I'm still
confused.
Burton seems to say that the result is not realised.
Keating seems to say that the realisation of result is not important
(a). I understand (d) as saying that whether or not we see the result we
should take it as having been fulfilled.
QUESTION
Is the realisation (actuality) of result important or not important?
Should we take it as having been fulfilled even though we don't see it?
By Muzi
In Him
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